Plans to deter commuters and other rail users from using the train between Birmingham and Manchester have been described as very concerning for Staffordshire.
Business leaders claim proposals put forward by The National Audit Office (NAU) would cause a “massive headache” for local companies and push more traffic onto the county’s congested roads. They are now getting set to lobby the new Transport Secretary over the issue.
According to the NAU report published this week, the Government may need to deliberately put people off travelling by rail between the two cities following the scrapping of HS2’s northern leg.
The NAU said this is likely to mean trains have less capacity and can take fewer passengers. It said it would need to be managed by “incentivising people to travel at different times or to not travel by rail”.
Last Autumn, then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that sections of the high-speed railway linking Birmingham with Manchester and with the East Midlands would no longer be built.
It means that only the phase between London and the West Midlands will go ahead. New trains built for HS2, however, will run over the entire line.
Mike Herbert, Chair of Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce’s Transport Forum, pictured above, said: “We’re concerned by the announcement about reduced capacity for rail travel between Birmingham and Manchester. The northern leg of HS2 (from Birmingham to Manchester), was due to play a pivotal role in freeing up capacity on an already congested West Coast Mainline.
“The National Audit Office report of 22 July, confirms that HS2’s primary aim was as a high-speed, high-capacity railway between London and Manchester via Birmingham. It has always been the Chambers’ principal concern that services at Stoke and Stafford post-HS2 should, at the very least, be as good as pre-HS2.
“For example, Stoke services to London were at best three per hours with a fastest journey of now hour 30 minutes. The biggest issue was, and still is, capacity.”
Chamber Policy Adviser Declan Riddell, pictured above, added: “Transport is a key enabler for business, moving people to and from work and also for work.
“Dissuading passengers from travelling by rail at certain times of the week will be a massive headache for businesses and will push more cars onto already congested local routes such as the M6, A34 and A50.
“The previous government committed to invest the money saved from cancelling the northern leg of HS2 into major transport initiatives and the Chamber will lobby the new Transport Secretary to honour this commitment.”
Less than six months ago, the Mayors of Greater Manchester and West Midlands Combined Authorities tabled initial plans, with the aim of linking Birmingham and Manchester via Staffordshire and Crewe. The initial plans looked at the options to:
- Enhance the West Coast Main Line (WCML).
- Add bypasses at the most congested parts of the line.
- To add a completely new line – potentially following the route HS2 would have taken.
Declan added: “We were happy to lend our support to these very broad proposals, subject to further clarity, which hasn’t happened. We very much hope that any review by the Department for Transport (DfT) will consider these options and find pragmatic solutions to get more of us using public transport.”
